Memphis does not have an attendance problem. Tulsa playing at 8-1 USF on a beautiful TH night and that crowd is SPARSE.

No one said we have an attendance problem.

We just recognize we could do better.

There cannot be more than 3k people for a ranked team on a beautiful weather night. I mean, it is embarrassing.

And it is senior night. Wow.

Of course, half of the population of the Tampa area isn't from Tampa so it's not like they have a huge local following. And zero allegiance/loyalty.

There's no question that we have the most potential in the conference for attendance. Give us our record this year and a beautiful night game and there's over 40,000 every single time. Most teams in this conference can't say that. USF being one

(11-16-2017 10:33 PM)ddramone Wrote:  There cannot be more than 3k people for a ranked team on a beautiful weather night. I mean, it is embarrassing.

USF is ranked?

(11-16-2017 10:37 PM)MemTiger90 Wrote:  There's no question that we have the most potential in the conference for attendance. Give us our record this year and a beautiful night game and there's over 40,000 every single time. Most teams in this conference can't say that. USF being one

I'd say ECU is right there with us followed by Cincy, Navy, UCF, then Houston.
Nezt level would be Temple, UConn, and Tulsa with SMU, Tulane, and USF bringing up the rear.

(11-16-2017 11:01 PM)mempho_to_diego Wrote:  

(11-16-2017 10:33 PM)ddramone Wrote:  There cannot be more than 3k people for a ranked team on a beautiful weather night. I mean, it is embarrassing.

USF is ranked?

#23 in ap poll:

http://www.espn.com/college-football/rankings

#20 in coaches poll (same link as above).

Yeah, they're ranked all right. Below us, but yeah, they're ranked.

It’s quite obvious that kids today don’t have the same value of attending sporting events that we had. That’s ok and I’m not critical. It just means we have to make it worth their time. Look at attendance figures all across pro and college sports. Wonder where we’ll be in 25 years. I’ll probably be ‘behind the stone wall’.

(11-17-2017 12:01 AM)UofMark Wrote:  It’s quite obvious that kids today don’t have the same value of attending g sporting events that we had. That’s ok and I’m not critical. It just means we have to make it worth their time. Look at attendance figures all across pro and college sports. Wonder where we’ll be in 25 years. I’ll probably be ‘behind the stone wall’.

Well, for one, the quality of your in-home TV, with all the creature comforts of home, there's not a bad seat in YOUR house, don't have to fight traffic, etc.. All of the good things about watching a game in your house just keep getting better and all of the bad things about GOING to a game (traffic, crime, high seat prices) are likely to get worse. So, you're probably right, attendance is probably not going to get better over time.

That said, Tampa's weather today was gorgeous, just as to be expected. The stadium is extremely nice, etc. And USF is ranked. It was a close game until the end, and that place was empty.

Agree on the social factors lowering desires to attend games in some areas. Of course there are events and some teams that get massive numbers...but even the feel of love games has changed...and much not for the better, even as arenas and stadiums make more concessions.

One prime reason is the I phone.

Crushing enthusiasm even for those attending. To not see this is willful blindness.

Another case of it is what it is, and people allowed themselves to get addicted, and in many ways, proven ways, that addiction has become painful. Bad enough that double digit numbers of Americans die every day due to cell phone distraction, the lack of patience it has helped create, the taking away from the value of a group experience by everyone doing their own stare, and the people who are communicating with ascreen and not other people standing next to them all has contributed to devalue live events, let alone much of life.

Before the stop being a fogey crowd drops in, or the stale crowd drops in stating A beside the point piece of nonsense like I love my smart phone or people will do what they want...we get that. It simply no question hurts the environment. And many react to that.

People indeed would rather dedicate parts of their lives to a tiny screen instead of to people in their presence. Hell, even our waiter the other night was sneaking views at their phone. Pure agony.

(11-16-2017 10:37 PM)ddramone Wrote:  And it is senior night. Wow.

Of course, half of the population of the Tampa area isn't from Tampa so it's not like they have a huge local following. And zero allegiance/loyalty.

A lot of people that live in the Tampa Bay area are in bed by 8PM.

(11-16-2017 10:18 PM)hsvtiger Wrote:  Memphis does not have an attendance problem. Tulsa playing at 8-1 USF on a beautiful TH night and that crowd is SPARSE.

Would you say Memphis has a bad weather attendance problem? When my high school football team played in Florida....we still had a great turnout when it rained.

Word on the street is Chuck Strong doesn't like these small crowds, both Chuck and Lane Kiffin like what's going on in Memphis

(11-17-2017 10:06 AM)memphisike Wrote:  Word on the street is Chuck Strong doesn't like these small crowds, both Chuck and Lane Kiffin like what's going on in Memphis

They're hoping when we hire Sumlin next month they'll get OC/DC jobs. Gah damn could you imagine that staff...

Attendance is simply a reality about interest in the product. I don't understand why people get so worked up about it.

While there are numerous factors that affect attendance, I have a theory why all but 20 or so schools don't consistently draw crowds in excess of 50K.

Memphis draws pretty well when the product is good (bball or football), but let's start with our university as an example of attendance issues. It's a commuter school. While just about everyone on this board are loyal advocates who care about the school, there are a LOT of students and alumni who are not. A lot of these students and alumni aren't even proud to have gone to Memphis. Although it makes no sense to me to denigrate your own school, I've witnessed it many times. That's not unique to Memphis. You can probably say the same for USF, Tulsa, Central Florida, etc.

On the other hand, it means something to say you went to Alabama, Ohio State, Notre Dame, etc. (at least in terms of perception). Those schools have strong brand recognition and tradition and more financial support than schools like Memphis and USF.

As I said before, there are probably only 20 or so schools that consistently draw big crowds. Most of those schools are in college towns or are the clear focus and economic driver of the town. Everyone is connected to the brand and attending bball and football games is essentially the thing to do. That's certainly true in Knoxville. It's true in Tuscaloosa, Ann Arbor, and down the list we can go.

Anecdotally, I believe Southern Cal and Miami football have struggled at times with attendance despite having big brands and strong tradition. But they are in big towns with lots of stuff to do. LA does not revolve around Southern Cal football or UCLA basketball. Same is true in Miami with Miami football.

Of course there are lots of other factors to consider and there are exceptions to every rule. I just don't get too worked up over it. Memphis attendance is what it is. When the team is performing at a high level and weather is OK, Memphis can get about 40-45K butts in seats.

USF is exploring building an on-campus stadium in the 40K range.